Measuring The Cost
by J. B. Tilton
Summary: Paige learns a hard lesson about why it’s so important to keep the existence of magic from the mortal world.
1. Chapter 1

CHARMED

"Measuring The Cost"

By J. B. Tilton

Email: K+ (for mild language)

Disclaimer: "Charmed" and all related characters and events are the property of the WB television network, except for those characters specifically created for this story. This is a work of fan fiction and no infringement of copyright is intended.

(Authors note: This story takes place between season 4 episodes "Enter The Demon" and "Size Matters".)

Paige learns a hard lesson about why it's so important to keep the existence of magic from the mortal world.

ONE

Paige entered the manor and looked around. Standing in the entryway she didn't see anyone else. And it was strangely quiet. Each time she had been here before the others had been here. Now, with no one around, the silence was almost deafening. The only thing that could be heard was the ticking of the grandfather clock.

"Hello?" she called out.

She was met with silence. If someone had been in the kitchen they would have probably heard her come in. They would have at least heard her call out. If they were upstairs they might not have heard her, especially if they were in the attic.

"Hello?" she called out again, this time louder.

"Hey there," said Cole, coming out of the upstairs. "I just got here myself. It doesn't appear as if anyone is home right now."

"Hi, Cole," said Paige, a little uneasy.

Cole seemed like a nice enough guy. Nice enough for a half demon. She knew he was Phoebe's boyfriend and apparently the others trusted him. But she was always just a little nervous around him. She wasn't really sure how much he was demon and how much he was human.

"I just stopped by to say hello," she said to Cole. "Is it safe for you to be here? Aren't there bounty hunters or something after you?"

'Yes, there are," said Cole, coming down the stairs. "But I was able to give them the slip. I should be okay for a while. They won't be expecting me to come back here so soon."

"Oh, okay," said Paige. "I guess they're all out right now."

"Looks like it," said Cole. "Leo is probably off on White Lighter business. Piper is probably at the club. I'm not sure what Phoebe is doing. She might be out on an interview or something."

"Probably," said Paige. "So, what's it like to be half demon?"

"It has its advantages," said Cole. "I get to shimmer anywhere I want to go. Plus I have enough power to protect myself against most bounty hunters. Of course, being hunted by the entire underworld isn't much fun."

"I can imagine," said Paige. "Demons come after us because they're evil and we're good. I would imagine you have both sides after you now."

"Well, that should change soon," said Cole. "As soon as word gets around that I've switched sides as it were the good guys may not be so quick to attack."

"Assuming they believe you," said Paige. "Some may not be so quick to accept that you've changed."

"Like you?" Cole questioned.

"I will admit it does kind of make me nervous," said Paige. "Piper, Phoebe, and Leo keep telling me that all demons are our enemies. It's just a little unsettling knowing you're half demon, that's all."

"I appreciate the honesty," said Cole. "Of course, if I had wanted to attack you I've had every opportunity. And I haven't. Maybe that will make it a little easier for you."

"Some," said Paige. "I just don't know why we can't use our magic in public. I mean, so what if the world finds out about us? It's not like this is the sixteen hundreds or anything. They don't burn witches at the stake anymore."

"Actually," said Cole, "a great many places still have those laws on their books. Attitudes may have changed some but in a lot of cases the laws haven't been amended to reflect those changes. There are a lot of outdated laws that are technically still enforceable. They just haven't been enforced for a very long time and I guess most people have forgotten about them."

"That's right, you are a lawyer, aren't you?" Paige asked.

"Yes,' said Cole. "And a very good one at that. But it's important to keep magic protected and not just because of some antiquated laws still on the books. It can cause a lot of problems. Problems you don't want to have to deal with?"

"I don't see how?" said Paige. "I think the mortal world would be glad to know we have our powers and are able to protect them."

"And it would let them know that there are demons out there," said Cole. "A lot of people wouldn't be willing to accept that."

"It just seems like a lot of hogwash to me," said Paige.

"Trust me, it's not," said Cole.

"Well, guess I'll come back later," said Paige. "I need to get back to work anyway. I'll see you later."

"Sure," said Cole.

As Paige left the manor Cole thought about his conversation with Paige. She was new to the Craft. And with her newfound powers it was easy to see how she would believe what she was thinking. A lot of new witches and demons alike felt the same way. They have all this power, what's the sense in keeping it quiet? No one else keeps quiet about their abilities.

And that was a very dangerous way to think. Until Paige was convinced that protecting magic was the only way there was always a chance she might get careless. If she used her magic in public, that could expose them all. Cole decided the others would need to talk to her. To convince her just how important it was. He looked around and shimmered out of the manor just in case the bounty hunters were still on her trail.


	2. Chapter 2

TWO

"She really thinks it should be okay to use magic in public?" Phoebe asked that night.

"That's what she said," said Cole. "I figured the three of you might want to talk with her. Try to convince her how dangerous that thinking can be. She might get careless. That could put us all in danger."

"Yeah," said Piper, "like taking the Book of Shadows to work to punish a coworker."

"I don't think she'll do that again," said Leo. "It sort of backfired on her."

"Yes, but it hasn't changed how she thinks," said Phoebe. "Cole is right. Unless she's convinced that magic has to be protected, she might get careless. Just like we did. Remember when we went to the future?"

"I'll never forget it," said Piper. "The next time she comes over we'll talk to her. We should be able to convince her how wrong she is. We'll jus tell her what we went through. That should change her mind."

"Leo," said Cole, "can I speak to you in the living room privately for a minute?"

"Sure," said Leo a bit confused.

"Keeping secrets are we?" Phoebe asked jokingly.

"Not really," said Cole. "I just want his advice on something, that's all."

"Well, dinner will be ready in a few minutes," said Piper. "Don't take too long."

"We won't," said Cole.

"I wonder what that was about?" Phoebe asked as Cole and Leo went into the living room.

"He probably wants some ideas on where he can hide from the bounty hunters," said Piper. "Leo is sure to know some places where they'll have trouble finding Cole."

"Yeah, that's probably it," said Phoebe.

Leo and Cole were still in the living room talking when Paige got home. She said hello to them and went into the kitchen to see Piper and Phoebe.

"Hey there," said Phoebe. "Cole said you stopped by this afternoon."

"Yeah," said Paige. "I figured if I'm going to be a Charmed One I might as well learn all I can."

"You aren't going to try sneaking the Book of Shadows out of the manor again, are you?" Piper asked.

"Oh, no," said Paige. "Once is more than enough. I think I'll just leave it in the attic where it belongs."

"Good," said Phoebe. "Magic has a habit of doing something different from what you think it's going to do. You learned that first hand."

"I sure did," said Paige. "Of course, if we were allowed to be open about our magic it might not be so hard. But you guys keep saying we have to keep it a secret and protect magic. Frankly, I don't see what there is to protect. With magic we can do just about anything we want."

"Paige," said Piper, "maybe we can convince you that it's very important that you keep our secret. A couple of years ago we accidentally got sent to the future."

"You think you can pull this off?" Cole asked Leo in the living room. "I know someone who can do it but I'm not sure a demon is the best choice."

"Well, you're right about that," said Leo. "Don't worry. It won't be a problem. We have a White Lighter who specializes in cases like this. I can get hold of him right away. It shouldn't take long."

"Great," said Cole. "We need to get this taken care of right away."

"For once I agree with you," said Leo. "I'll contact Chandler and see if he can drop by for a bit."

"Thanks, Leo," said Cole. "I appreciate it."

"Well, it's as much for the girls as much as for you," said Leo. "It's the least I can do."

"I still appreciate it," said Cole. "How long before this Chandler can get here?"

"Not long, probably," said Leo. "Like I said, he specializes in this."

"Great," said Cole. "Well, we'd better get back in the kitchen. Piper and Phoebe are bound to wonder what we've been up to in here."

"You're right about that," said Leo. "Come on. With any luck Chandler will get here and we won't have to answer a whole lot of questions."

"Good," said Cole.

They went into the kitchen where the girls were talking. As they entered the kitchen Piper was just finishing her story to Paige.

"So you can see what can happen if magic gets exposed," said Piper.

"Yeah," said Paige, "but you said that was because Phoebe used magic for personal gain. If we don't use it for personal gain I don't see what the harm could be."

"I give up," said Piper.

"Don't worry," said Paige. "I understand what you're saying. I know we have to keep our magic secret. I don't necessarily agree with it but keep the secret."

"That's all we ask," said Phoebe, glancing at Piper.

They still weren't convinced. Even if Paige did keep the secret she might be careless, just like Cole said.

"Well, dinner is ready," said Piper. "Let's all sit down and enjoy a nice quiet meal for a change."

"I'm for that," said Cole.


	3. Chapter 3

THREE

The five were sitting in the living room enjoying a quiet evening after dinner. Nothing much was going on and they were all grateful for the respite from demonic attacks and the bounty hunters that were still after Cole. He had told them he would be safe in the manor for a little while. He had laid a false trail and they were thousands of miles away looking for him. It would be some time before they decided to see if he had come back to the manor.

"You know," said Leo suddenly, "I could go for some ice cream."

"After that huge dinner?" Paige asked. "Where do you put it all?"

"I do a lot of orbing, remember?" Leo asked. "Piper, you want to help me get some for everyone."

"Sure," said Piper.

She knew that look and that tone. It meant that Leo wanted to talk to her. It was very subtle and most of the time neither Phoebe nor Paige were aware of it. As they went into the kitchen Cole turned to Phoebe.

"I can't stay very long," said Cole. "The bounty hunters are sure to come looking for me here eventually. News about us isn't exactly a big secret in the underworld."

"Well then," said Phoebe, snuggling up next to him, "let's make the most of it."

"Get a room," said Paige, rolling her eyes.

"Great suggestion," said Cole, pulling Phoebe to her feet.

Paige just stared at the two in amazement as they bounded up the stairs. That left her all alone in the living room. Piper and Leo would be back in a minute. And she was real sure she didn't want to go upstairs and have to walk past Phoebe's room just then. After a few minutes, Piper and Leo came back into the living room carrying a gallon of ice cream, some bowls, and some spoons.

"Where are Cole and Phoebe?" Piper asked.

"Upstairs," said Paige.

"Well, they do get so little time together," said Leo, looking at Piper. "I'm sure they have some things they need to talk over."

"Yeah, probably," said Piper.

"What are you two up to?" Paige asked.

"Just ice cream," said Leo. "I hope you like Rocky Road."

"I love it," said Paige.

"Good," said Piper. "Because that's all we have right now. I'd give anything for some double fudge decadence."

"Yeah, but think of the calories," said Paige.

Piper just laughed. The three sat in the living room chatting for several minutes when someone suddenly orbed into the entryway. He was in his sixties, bald on top, and was wearing a white robe that the White Lighters normally wore. The three looked over as he walked into the living room.

"Chandler," said Leo. "What brings you here?"

"Oh, just thought I'd finally meet the Charmed Ones," said the White Lighter. "I've heard so much about them I've been very interested in meeting them for a long time."

"This is Chandler," said Leo, introducing him to the rest of the group. "This is Piper, my wife. And that's Paige, the youngest. And that would be Phoebe coming down the stairs."

"And Cole Turner," said Chandler turning to look at Phoebe and Cole.

"It sounded like we had company," said Phoebe, glancing at Leo. "What's the occasion?"

"Just a social call," said Chandler, extending his hand to shake Phoebe's. "I'm Chandler Morgan. I spend most of my time on Council business and rarely get a chance to get into the field."

He moved over to shake Pipers' hand.

"I'm a member of the White Lighter Council," Chandler explained. "We help decide who will become White Lighters. It's not an easy task, let me tell you."

"I can imagine," said Paige. "There must be a lot of qualified candidates out there."

"Quite a few," said Chandler shaking Paige's hand. "But you're something rather unique I understand. You were born a White Lighter?"

"Half White Lighter," Paige corrected. "My mother was a witch. But then you probably all ready know that."

"Yes," said Chandler. "Leo's very lucky. White Lighter to the Charmed Ones. But no one ever said how attractive the three of you are. Well, no one but Leo, of course."

"Are you hitting on us?" Paige asked.

"Not at all," said Chandler. "Just stating a fact. I'm afraid I can't stay long. There's a matter of some urgency that demands my attention. I just had a few spare moments and thought I'd take the opportunity to meet you."

"Well, that's very thoughtful," said Piper. "When we hear from up there it's usually to do something the Elders want done."

"They are quite busy," said Chandler. "You have no idea what they do every day. Frankly, I'm surprised they get as much done as they do. Well, I hate to cut this short but I need to be going. Duty and all that."

"It was nice of you to stop by," said Phoebe. "Maybe you can come back again soon and we can chat some."

"I'd like that," said Chandler. "Leo, I'll see you at the next meeting."

"Of course," said Leo.

"Cole," said Chandler. "You're not at tall as I imagined."

"I can be," said Cole, smiling. "But I'm sure you wouldn't like the change."

"Probably not," said Chandler. "Well, ladies, it was a pleasure. Sorry to rush off. I'll try to make my next visit a little longer."

"That was strange," said Paige after Chandler had orbed out.

"What?" Leo asked.

"He just stopped by to meet us?" Paige questioned. "I don't think that's ever happened to me before."

"You'd be surprised how many White Lighters would like that," said Leo. "You are something of legends up there. They've been anticipating your arrival for three hundred years. You're kind of like celebrities."

"I guess," said Paige. "Now, how about that ice cream before it melts?"

"Great idea," said Phoebe.

Piper just smiled as she began to scoop the ice cream into the bowls.


	4. Chapter 4

FOUR

Paige hurried through breakfast the next morning and then left for work. She was running late as usual. If she was lucky she might be able to sneak into her office before her boss knew she was late. As she turned the corner just two blocks from social services she was almost immediately stopped by a police roadblock.

"I'm sorry, miss," said the officer. "This area is blocked off right now. You'll have to find another way around."

"What's going on?" Paige asked.

"Please, miss, just move on," said the office. "We need to keep this road clear."

As Paige turned her car to take an alternate route she noticed Darryl talking to another uniformed officer. Since she was all ready late she figured it wouldn't hurt if she were a little later. She could always use the police roadblock as an excuse for why she was late in the first place.

She parked her car two blocks up the road well away from the roadblock. She walked back to the roadblock and looked around for Darryl. She found him off to one side talking on the radio. As she walked up to him he finished speaking to whomever he had been speaking with.

"What's up?" Paige asked.

"Oh, Paige, hi," said Darryl. "We have kind of a situation here."

"What is it?" Paige asked.

"One of our officers suddenly went berserk," said Darryl. "He's holding a young girl hostage. He's threatening to kill her if we try anything."

"Oh my God, what happened?" Paige asked.

"We don't know yet," said Darryl. "This is the second occurrence in as many weeks. We were able to keep the first one quiet but we can't do that this time. Every major television station is here. So are most of the papers and radio stations."

"Any idea why he went crazy?" Paige asked.

"Not yet," said Darryl. "We're trying to get the hostage free first. This doesn't make any sense. I know that cop. He's a good cop. He just got back after spending almost a year in Afghanistan. He's been back for about three weeks and everything seemed to be fine. Then, about an hour ago he just kind of snapped."

"That's terrible," said Paige.

"Hang on," said Darryl. "Something is coming over the radio."

"The hostage has been released," said a voice over the radio. "I repeat, the hostage has been released."

Paige watched as a young woman ran across the street into a group of waiting police officers. The officer that had taken her hostage simply stood in the middle of the street holding his pistol in the air. He seemed to be crying. He was saying something but Paige couldn't figure out what it was.

"At least the girl is safe," said Paige.

"Yes," said Darryl. "But as long as he has that gun he's a danger. I'm just afraid the lieutenant will think he's too much of a risk and have one of the S.W.A.T. members take him out."

"They can't do that," said Paige. "There's obviously something wrong with him. He needs help."

"I know," said Darryl. "But he has a loaded gun and he's definitely a threat. We can't just stand by and do nothing. Someone is going to get hurt if we don't do anything."

"What are you going to do?" Paige asked.

"Well," said Darryl looking around, "normally I wouldn't ask this. But we're running out of options. Is there anything you can do?"

"Magic?" Paige questioned in a hushed voice. "You want me to use magic?"

"I wouldn't ask but this could get out of hand real quick," said Darryl.

"Well," said Paige. "I suppose…."

She was interrupted as the officer in the middle of the street suddenly starting screaming at the top of his lungs.

"I'm sorry," screamed the officer, tears streaming down his face. "I don't' know why I did it. I didn't want to hurt anyone. I can't take this anymore. It's too much for me. I just can't do it any more."

Everyone watched in horror as he raised the pistol he was holding and put it against his temple. Paige didn't hesitate. She called for the pistol and it instantly orbed out of the officers' hand into hers. She looked up to see the officer looking around confused. She also saw a news crew behind the man. With a video camera pointed directly at her.

"Shoot," said Paige, turning to hide her face from the camera. She shoved the gun into Darryl's hand. "I have to get out of here."

Paige turned and ran up the street while everyone stood round in apparent confusion. As she turned the corner of a building she looked around real quick to make sure she was alone. Not seeing anyone around she orbed out of the street and back to the manor.


	5. Chapter 5

FIVE

"You did what?" Piper shrieked after Paige had told her what had happened. "Paige, are you out of your mind? You told me yesterday that you understood about protecting magic."

"I do," said Paige. "But what was I supposed to do? The cop was going to blow his brains out. Was I just supposed to stand there and watch it happen?"

"Yes," said Piper. "Paige, I know it's not easy. But sometimes you just have to stand by and let things take their course. You can't save everyone. And a situation like that was just too risky. You may have exposed magic to the mortal world."

"I'm sure no one saw what I did," Paige said. "Only Darryl. And he's not going to tell anyone."

"What about the camera crew?" Piper asked.

"They were focused on the cop," said Paige. "No one was even paying any attention to me."

"You'd better hope so," said Piper. "You could have put us all in danger with this little stunt. I knew you weren't taking us seriously."

'No, I was taking you seriously," said Paige. "I only had a second to act. I just thought.…"

"No, Paige, you didn't think," said Piper. "This is exactly what Phoebe and I were talking about yesterday. You have to be on your guard every second. Exposing magic is simply not an option. There's no telling what could happen because of this."

"It will be okay," said Paige. "Like I said, only Darryl saw what I did. Everything is going to be okay, you'll see."

"It had better be," said Piper. "If this gets out I'm not sure how we're going to fix it."

"We won't have to," said Paige. "You'll see. Everything will be fine."

"You'd better get to work," said Piper. "Your boss is probably mad as a hornet as it is. We'll deal with this tonight."

As Paige orbed out of the manor she was thinking there was nothing to deal with. She was sure there wasn't anything to worry about. This would all blow over very soon.

"I'm home," Paige called coming into the manor after work.

As she walked into the entryway she glanced into the living room. Piper, Phoebe, and Leo were sitting on the sofa. Cole was conspicuously absent. Probably moved on to avoid the bounty hunters, Paige decided. There was also someone else in the living room. Darryl was sitting in one of the chairs. The looks on all their faces indicated they were not happy.

"We need to talk," said Piper.

"Sure," said Paige, coming into the living room. "What's on your mind?"

"I think you know about what," Piper said.

"Piper and Darryl have filled us in on what happened," said Phoebe. "Paige, how could you do that? After everything we've told you? Do you have any idea just how dangerous what you did was?"

"What's the big deal?" Paige asked. "Like I told Piper, no one saw what happened. No one came to my office to interrogate me. So everything is fine."

"No, it's not," said Darryl. "One of the news camera crews caught the whole thing on tape. Including you handing the gun to me. I've spent the entire afternoon trying to explain what happened to internal affairs."

"What did you tell them?" Paige asked.

"I told them I had no idea who you were," said Darryl. "I told them you asked what was going on and then did that orbing thing. Then you just ran away. I don't think they believed me."

"Oh," said Paige. "Well, they can't prove anything. All they have is a videotape that was shot from what, sixty feet away? At that distance I doubt they can even identify who I am."

"Paige," said Leo, "they have ways to enhance videotapes. It's possible they can identify you."

"That's not all," said Darryl. "After internal affairs was finished I got a visit from some federal agents. They asked a whole lot of questions I couldn't answer. I had to do a lot of double talking."

"I'm sorry," said Paige. "I was just trying to help."

"Sorry isn't good enough," said Leo. "We've all tried to make you understand how important it is to protect magic. You may have exposed it to the entire world."

"I'm sure the local news will be carrying the story tonight," said Darryl. "And once the wires pick it up it could be on the national news."

"This isn't good," said Paige.

"No, it's not," said Phoebe. "Our only hope is to get that tape back from the news station. Without the tape they don't have any proof of anything."

"You aren't seriously thinking about breaking into the news station?" Darryl questioned. "That's a felony. I can't be a party to that."

"You want to have another session with internal affairs or the feds?" Piper asked. "The way I see it, we don't have much of a choice. Besides, it's not like we'll be breaking in. It will be more like orbing in. All we have to do is find the tape and destroy it."

"But you'll have to do that after the station closes," said Leo. "By then the tape will all ready have aired. And a lot of people tape the news so they can watch it later."

"Then we should get there before they air it," said Phoebe. "All we have to do is find out which machine they're going to be using to broadcast the tape from. Then Piper can blow it up. If we're real careful they won't ever know we were there."

"And if you can't find the machine?" asked Darryl. "You're talking about the major broadcast for the station. There are going to be dozens of people there to put out that broadcast. You might not even have a chance to find it."

"You have a better idea?" Piper asked. "Look, I know it's not the perfect plan. But I don't see we have any other choice. It's a little after five right now. That means we have less than an hour to get to the station, find that tape, and destroy it before they can air it."

"What about a spell or something?" Darryl asked. "Something you can cast from here."

"Too risky," said Phoebe. "There's no way we can be sure we get the right tape unless we're there. No, Piper is right. The only way to fix this is to make sure the tape is destroyed before they can air it. That way any proof they have will be gone."

"Did you hear something?" Leo asked, looking around.

"No," said Piper. "What did you hear?"

Before Leo could answer the front door burst open. Several men dressed in military type uniforms and carrying weapons rushed into the house. As they did another group of men dressed similarly came rushing out of the kitchen. Before any of them could move Paige felt a stinging in her neck. She reached up and pulled a dart out of her neck. She looked around and saw Piper, Phoebe, Leo, and Darryl all suddenly slump to the floor unconscious. Before Paige could even utter a sound, she suddenly lost consciousness.


	6. Chapter 6

SIX

Paige opened her eyes and looked around. She was lying on a small bed in a very small room. Besides the bed the room held a small desk with a couple of chairs, a television, a radio, another door that was partially opened and appeared to lead to a small bathroom, and two other doors that were closed. One of the doors had a lock on it. Sitting in one of the chairs was a man dressed in a suit looking through a folder. He looked up as Paige sat up in the bed.

"Good, you're awake," said the man. "You've been out quite a while. I told them they were using too much of the tranquilizer but they didn't want to take any chances."

"Where am I?" Paige asked. "Who are you?"

"My name is Jeremiah Wellington," said the man. "You're in a private room at a secluded location. Oh, and I wouldn't mess with the collar around your neck."

Paige reached up and found a metal collar attached to her neck.

"What is this?" she asked.

"Call it a deterrent, "said Wellington. "If you try to disappear like you did on the street or if you get more than ten feet from this room, it will detonate."

"Detonate?" Paige questioned. "You put a bomb around my neck?"

"A necessary precaution, I'm afraid," said Wellington. "You see we don't quite know how you do what you do. So it was necessary to take some precautions so that you don't disappear on us."

"Where are my sisters?" Paige demanded.

"They're fine," said Wellington. "They're in similar rooms like this one. I'll be interviewing them shortly. Oh, and Mr. Wyatt is fine, too. Trust me, none of you are in any danger so long as you follow the rules."

"Not in any danger?" Paige shrieked. "You break into our house, drug us, drag us off to God knows where, and you say we aren't in any danger? Just who the hell do you think you are, anyway? And what gives you the right to treat us this way?"

"This gives me the right," said Wellington, putting a folded piece of paper on the desk. "This is a legally issued court order allowing me to take the four of you into protective custody."

"Protective custody?" Paige asked. "Since when you treat people in protective custody like common criminals? I do know a little something about the law. We haven't done anything wrong. We haven't broken any laws. You don't have the right to treat us like this."

"This gives me the right," said Wellington, holding up the warrant. "And you're in protective custody for reasons of national security."

"National security?" Paige asked. "Just who are you anyway?"

"I'm in charge of this cell," said Wellington. "There are a number of them scattered across the United States. We're called The Initiative. And our job is to protect the American people from supernatural threats. You know the kind. Vampires, demons, warlocks, that sort of thing."

"You're joking, right?" Paige asked, feigning ignorance. "Those things don't exist."

"Please, don't insult my intelligence," said Wellington, looking in the folder. "Paige Matthews. Born August 1977. Adopted by William and Melissa Matthews shortly thereafter. Adopted parents killed in a car accident in 1990, which you miraculously survived. Discovered long lost sisters Piper and Phoebe Halliwell in May 2001. You work as an assistant social worker for the Bay Area Social Services. Known abilities are some form of modified telekinetic ability and some form of teleportation. Have I missed anything?"

"You forgot moody, sullen, and prone to tell people to take a flying leap," said Paige. "Look, I don't know what you think you know…."

Wellington just turned and turned on the television. He started a videotape and Paige watched in horror. As she watched the tape, she saw herself standing next to Darryl on the street. She held out her hand and the gun from the police officer suddenly orbed into her hand. The she saw herself look toward the camera, shove the gun into Darryl's hand, and turn and run around the corner of a building.

"This was taken just a moment later," said Wellington.

Paige watched herself come around the corner of a building. She glanced around furtively and then orbed out of the street. Wellington shut the tape off.

"Just some kind of special effects, that's all," said Paige.

"Please, Ms. Matthews," said Wellington, "this will go much easier if you just cooperate."

"Cooperate how?" Paige asked.

"First," said Wellington, "we have determined that you are a witch. As are your sisters, apparently. We aren't sure just what Mr. Wyatt is. But analysis of his blood indicates he's not quite human. We also know you're acquainted with one Cole Turner, although his whereabouts at the moment are unknown. Mr. Turner seems to have the ability to appear and disappear like you do."

"You're imagining things," said Paige. "This is all some figment of your warped imagination."

"Really?" Wellington asked. "Then would you care to explain the book in the attic of the manor? A book that no one seems to be able to touch. The Book of Shadows, I believe it's called. Not to mention the myriad of very odd ingredients Piper Halliwell seems to have in her kitchen. Not cooking ingredients to be sure. Our best guess is they're used for potions and elixirs and such."

Paige just stared at Wellington. He seemed to know almost everything about them. And what's more, it didn't seem to surprise him. If this Initiative was what he claimed it was then it was a good bet that he was familiar with a great many supernatural things.

"What do you want from me?" Paige asked.

"First, some answers," said Wellington. "We know a great deal but there is also a lot we don't know. All I'm asking at this stage is that you answer my questions so we can know more fully what we're dealing with."

"And then what?" Paige asked.

"As I said," said Wellington, "this is a matter of national security. We've known about the existence of demons, witches, and a great many other supernatural things for quite some time. The Initiative is responsible for combating the evil supernatural beings that seem to prey on humans.

"We also know that as a witch, you aren't evil. Your job is to protect the innocent and fight evil wherever you may find it. That's what we're offering you. The chance to fight whatever evil you come across with the full resources of The Initiative behind you."

"We do okay on our own," said Paige.

"Oh, yes, I can see that," said Wellington. "Patricia Halliwell, your mother, apparently died fighting a demon just after you were born. Prudence Halliwell died under mysterious circumstances. And the reported cause of her death, congestive heart failure, seems to be quite inaccurate. I'm offering you a chance to fight evil and lessen the risk of dying in the process."

"So, if I agree, I'll be free to go?" Paige asked. "And my sisters, too?"

"I'm afraid we can't do that," said Wellington. "You'll be kept here under protective custody where you'll be safe. You'll help us identify supernatural threats to the American people and devise ways to stop them. But I'm afraid your days of fighting on your own are over. It's just too dangerous."

"And if I refuse?" Paige asked. "What then? You just lock us up where no one will ever find us again?"

"No," said Wellington. "You're much too dangerous for that. There would always be the chance that you might escape. No, I'm afraid if you refuse we won't have any alternative. You would have to be segregated for reasons of national security."

"Segregated?" Paige questioned. "That's a fancy way of saying killed."

For reasons of national security, as I said," said Wellington. "I'll give you some time to think it over. I know this is a great deal for you to take in. I'm sure you'll make the right decision."

Without another word, Wellington got up and left the room. As he exited, Paige noticed two armed guards stand outside her room


	7. Chapter 7

SEVEN

Wellington was gone for several hours. Paige tried the door but found it securely locked. She considered trying to orb out of the room. But the collar around her neck made her think better of it. She didn't know why but she was completely convinced that Wellington had been telling the truth about it being a bomb. And if she orbed out of the room she might not live long enough to complete that orb.

She also noticed a video camera in one corner of the room at the ceiling. It moved with her whenever she moved about the small room. They were obviously keeping a very close watch on her. There was no place in the room she could move that the video camera couldn't see her. Finally, after several hours, Wellington came back into the room.

"I trust you've thought over my proposal," said Wellington, sitting in a chair next to Paige.

"Proposal?" Paige questioned. "More like an ultimatum."

"Well, let's see," Wellington said, looking in a file folder he was carrying. "We've learned a bit more about you since our last visit. You're a Charmed One, half White Lighter, which is very interesting since we didn't even know about White Lighters before this. Your powers seem to be related to something called orbing. And as I understand it, you and your sisters recently killed someone called the Source of all Evil. Vanquishing I believe the term is."

"You seem to know quite a bit about me and my sisters," said Paige.

"Yes, well your friend, Inspector Morris, was quite helpful in that respect," said Wellington.

"You're lying," said Paige. "Darryl would never betray a friend like that."

"Oh, you'd be surprised what most people will do when given the right motivation," said Wellington. "Everyone has their price. It's just a matter of finding what that price is."

"I still think you're lying," said Paige.

"That's your right," said Wellington. "But since you haven't bothered to deny anything I've said I'll just assume that the information is correct."

"Okay, fine," said Paige. "Let's say, just for the sake of argument, that you are right. That everything you've said is true. It seems to me you don't really need my sisters or me. You have ways of getting the information you need."

"Only some of it," said Wellington. "There's other information only you can provide. Like that Book of Shadows. Inspector Morris said it somehow protects itself but he didn't know how. Is that why no one can seem to touch it?"

"It only protects itself from evil," said Paige. "So if you can't touch it that means you must be evil."

"No one is evil," said Wellington. "We're simply doing our job to protect the American people."

"By sacrificing whomever it takes to do that job, right?" Paige asked.

"You listen to me," said Wellington, suddenly becoming very agitated, "less than six weeks ago this country was viciously attacked. Two of the tallest buildings in the world were completely destroyed. The Pentagon was attacked and a good portion of it was totally demolished. A plane crashed in Pennsylvania totally obliterating it. More than three thousand people died because the people behind those attacks were too cowardly to face us openly.

"We are in a war, Ms. Matthews. Do you honestly think all of that could happen without demonic intervention? That a plane could violate the airspace over the Pentagon – one of the most secure buildings in the world – and crash into it without being stopped? That a second plane could crash into the World Trade Center Towers less than an hour after the first one did? Do you think any of that would be possible if it was only humans behind it?"

"You're saying the attacks were demonically related?" Paige asked.

"That's what our intelligence tells us," said Wellington, becoming calmer. "Oh, the people who actually pulled it off were quite human. But it was orchestrated by demons. And many of the terrorist attacks being carried out in the world today are orchestrated by demons. So we have to use every weapon at our disposal."

"Before I make any decisions," said Paige, "I want to see my sisters. And Leo."

"I can arrange that," said Wellington. "But I'm afraid there will have to be a minor adjustment."

"What kind of adjustment?" Paige asked as a man in a white lab coat entered the room.

"Well, the collar you're wearing," said Wellington. "As I said, if you move farther than ten feet from this room, it will detonate. So we have to do something about your powers."

Paige watched as the man in the lab coat removed a syringe and a small bottle of what looked like medicine. He inserted the syringe into the bottle and withdrew a small amount of the fluid. He turned to face Paige.

"The injection won't harm you," said Wellington. "It's a special drug that will inhibit certain portions of your brain. The only noticeable affect you will have is that you won't have access to your powers. I'm afraid it's a necessary requirement if you are to leave this room."

"That's all it will do?" Paige asked.

"You have my word," said the man in the lab coat. "We've been able to determine that utilizing your powers requires that you access a specific area of the brain. This drug simply inhibits that specific area of the brain that allows you access to your powers. As long as you have an injection every twenty four hours it will simply render you powerless."

"Okay," said Paige. "Anything to get this damned collar off."

The man injected Paige with the drug. He told Wellington it would take affect within thirty minutes when the drug hit her bloodstream and they'd be able to remove the collar after that.

Wellington waited an hour before removing the collar. He explained that he wanted to be sure the drug was firmly in Paige's bloodstream before he risked removing the collar. Paige was glad to get the collar off. After the collar was removed, Wellington escorted her to what he called the cafetorium so she could speak with Piper and Phoebe.

"I'm afraid I do have some unpleasant news, however," said Wellington. "It regards your brother-in-law, Leo Wyatt."

"What?" Paige asked with a sense of foreboding. "What have you done to him?"

'We didn't do anything," said Wellington. "But I'm afraid Mr. Wyatt chose not to heed my warning about leaving his room. A short time ago he chose to orb out of his room. I don't know where he was going but I can guarantee you that he never arrived. The second he was more than ten feet from the room the collar he was wearing would have detonated. He'd be dead before he knew it."

Paige just stared at Willington in shocked disbelief.


	8. Chapter 8

EIGHT

"Are you guys okay?" Paige asked as she, Piper, and Phoebe sat drinking coffee in the cafetorium.

"We're okay," said Piper. "A little shaken up but otherwise we haven't been harmed."

"Did… did they tell you about Leo?" Paige asked hesitantly.

"Yes, they did," said Phoebe in a whisper, looking around the room.

Two armed guards stood at all the exits. There didn't appear to be any video cameras in here so the girls felt it was relatively safe to talk pretty freely.

"You don't seem very upset about it," said Paige.

"Paige, Leo is a White Lighter," said Piper. "The only way to kill him is with the poison from a Dark Lighters' bolt. Even if that collar did what Mr. Wellington claims, it won't harm him permanently."

"Piper," said Paige, "if that collar was a bomb it would have blown his head off."

"Yes," said Piper, "and his natural healing ability would have corrected it almost immediately. He once told me that he could be at ground zero of a nuclear blast and he'd be relatively unharmed. So, no, we aren't really worried about him. Besides, we have more pressing matters to deal with."

"Yeah," said Phoebe, "like how to get out of here."

"Well, my powers are useless," said Paige, "just as I imagine yours are. That little injection has rendered me powerless."

"Me, too," said Phoebe. "Not that my power of premonition would do us much good in this situation."

"Well, being able to freeze time does have its advantages," said Piper. "Just before he injected me I froze him and was able to replace the drug with some water I had in a glass on the table. So my powers are still intact. And I think it's our best bet to get out of here."

"How?" Paige asked. "There are video cameras everywhere. You can't freeze the entire place can you?"

"No," said Piper. "First of all, I have no idea how big it is."

"I suppose you could freeze each section as we moved it," said Phoebe. "That's risky, though. Someone might notice what's going on before we get out and try to stop us."

"True," said Piper. "But I'm pretty sure I could freeze this entire room. Then we call for Leo and he can orb us out. There aren't any cameras in here so the only ones who know what's going on are the guards. With them frozen, there would be no one to stop us."

"What if you're wrong about Leo?" Paige asked. "What if that collar did kill him? Or what if it takes longer for him to reform or whatever than we think. If you freeze the room and the freeze wears off before he answers they'll know your powers aren't subdued."

"That's true," said Piper, thoughtfully. "But I don't see any other options."

"I do," said Phoebe. "Cole is still out there. If we could get a message to him he could shimmer us out. The question is how do we get a message to him?"

"What about a spell?" Paige asked. "Piper could cast a spell that tells him where we are. Then she can freeze the room and he can shimmer us out."

"Except that's an awful lot of information to pass in a spell," said Piper. "I suppose a spell could get his attention but how do I tell him what we're going to do without exposing what I'm doing?"

"You could wait until you go to bed," said Piper. "Once they think you're asleep, you could freeze the video camera in your room. That way when they don't see you moving they'll just think you're asleep. With the camera frozen Cole can shimmer in and you can explain the plan."

"It's risky," said Piper. "But it just might work. Assuming they let us see each other again. I'm not so sure they're going to do that again."

"So," said Phoebe, "what do we tell Wellington? He's going to want an answer from us. And he doesn't strike me as a very patient man."

"We stall," said Piper. "Tell him we need more time to consider our options. Tell him we need to decide how much we can tell him without compromising ourselves. Tell him anything that will give us some more time."

"Okay," said Paige. "The next time we meet here we need to be ready to orb out of here. Any idea where we go? They're probably crawling all over the manor. We can't go there."

"Cole will have some ideas on that," said Phoebe. "Remember, he's hiding from demonic bounty hunters. He's bound to know some places where Wellington and his goons can't find us."

"Okay," said Piper. "I'll try to get hold of Cole tonight. With any luck we'll be out of here soon."

Just then Wellington entered the room. He walked up to the girls and smiled at them.

"I do hope you enjoyed the reunion," said Wellington. "But it's getting late. You need your rest. I suggest you all retire to your rooms and get some sleep. We can continue our discussions in the morning."

Paige was escorted back to her room by the same two armed guards that had escorted her to the cafetorium. As they were walking down the corridor she saw Darryl further up the hall being escorted by two more armed guards. Darryl was handcuffed and shackled.

"Darryl," Paige called out, running up to him.

The guards all moved to block her way.

"What's the matter guys?" Paige asked. "You afraid of me? Didn't they tell you my powers are subdued at the moment? I just want to speak to him for a moment, that's all."

The guards all looked at each other and then decided it would be okay. They warned her not to make physical contact with Darryl and that they could only have a moment.

"Are you okay?" Paige asked. "Why are you shackled?"

"They think I'm working with you," said Darryl. "Paige, I'm sorry. There was nothing I could do. I had to tell them everything they wanted to know."

"What?" Paige asked. "You told them what they wanted to know?"

"Paige, they threatened my family," said Darryl. "My wife, my kids. I can't protect myself against these guys so there's no way they can. I couldn't put then in danger. They're my family. I didn't have any other choice."

"It's okay," said Paige, thinking about what Wellington had said about everyone having a price. "I understand. No one could expect you to put them in danger."

"I didn't want to tell them anything, but they're my family, Paige," said Darryl.

"I know," said Paige. "Don't worry about it. You did the right thing. I don't blame you."

"Thanks," said Darryl. "You know I would never betray you like that."

"I know," said Paige. "Just take care of yourself, Darryl. We'll take care of ourselves."

Before Darryl could respond the guards forced them apart. Paige was escorted back to her room where the two guards once again took up their positions outside the door. Paige wondered if Piper would have any luck getting hold of Cole.


	9. Chapter 9

NINE

The next morning Paige was escorted to the cafetorium where a meal had been prepared. At least she figured it was the next morning. There really was no way to determine time in this place. Piper and Phoebe were all ready there when she arrived.

"How did it go?" Paige asked.

"Great," said Piper. "I was able to get hold of Cole. He's waiting for a signal from me. As soon as I freeze the room he'll shimmer in and get us out of here."

"So, what are you waiting for?" Paige asked.

"Patience, dear sister," said Piper. "First we lull the guards into a false sense of security. We chat for a moment until they are bored enough. Then I freeze the room."

"Good idea," said Phoebe. "I'm sure they were told to keep a close eye on us."

"My thoughts exactly," said Piper. "Just keep an eye on them. When they look like they're bored I'll make my move."

The girls spent several moments talking about nothing in particular. As they talked they would occasionally glance at the guards to see what they were doing. After a while the guards began to whisper among themselves. They stopped paying as much attention to the sisters as they had when they had first come into the girl. Suddenly Piper flexed her wrist.

"Okay," she said looking around. "I'm not sure how long the freeze will last. I've never frozen such a large area before."

"So, what's the signal for Cole?" Phoebe asked.

"You are," said Piper. "I cast a spell that allows him to hear you if you call for him. Just like Leo can hear us. All you have to do is call to him and he should hear you."

"Cole," Phoebe called into the air. "Cole, we're ready to get out of here now."

Almost immediately Cole shimmered into the cafetorium. Phoebe hugged him close thankful that he was safe.

"Let's get out of here," said Piper. "Once my freeze wears off they're going to know what happened."

Before any of them could move the four doors that led out of the cafetorium suddenly burst open and armed guards rushed in, taking up positions around the room. Finally, Wellington entered the room smiling.

"Really," said Wellington, "did you think it would be that easy? The video cameras in your rooms aren't the only surveillance we have on you. We also have microphones in your rooms and in here. There isn't anything you can do we don't know about. We were quite aware of your little plan from the beginning. Now that we have Mr. Turner, we have the entire group. And I'm sure being half demon he will be able to increase our knowledge extensively."

"You don't have the right to do this," Paige screamed. "There are laws."

"Laws which may often be suspended for the greater good," said Wellington. "Do you think this is the first time something like this has happened? It happens all the time. Take World War II, for example. After the heinous attack on Pearl Harbor tens of thousands of Japanese in the United States were ushered into camps. For the good of the American people. To prevent them from sabotaging the American war effort."

"I was there," said Cole. "It was wrong then and it's wrong now. Most of those people were loyal American citizens. They had no intention of performing any sabotage. It doesn't justify what you're doing here."

"But some of them were spies and saboteurs," said Wellington. "Because of those camps we were able to ferret out a great many traitors to the United States. And look at the 1950s. Senator McCarthy helped to expose a great many people with very un-American ideas. Sure, a few had to suffer. But that's nothing when compared to the good it helped do."

"Good?" Cole questioned. "Thousands of people were blackballed simply because they wouldn't say what the so-called House Committee on Un-American Acts wanted them to say. To implicate their friends and family in a conspiracy that was largely in the minds of those hunting these so-called enemies."

"There's a name for what you're doing here," said Piper. "A witch-hunt. In this case, literally. You think we're going to help you? Dream on. You're as bad as the ones we fight. You're worse. At least they acknowledge their evil. You're doing all this under the guise of the greater good."

"It is for the greater good," said Wellington. "It's not pleasant but it has to be done. Do you have any idea what would happen if we just ignored the demons? Let them run rampid as they pleased?"

"Yes," said Paige. "People like us would be there to stop them. Without violating anyone's rights."

"Paige is right," said Cole. "What you're doing here violates every tenant the law was established to protect. It's a direct violation of several sections of the Constitution not to mention I don't know how many federal laws."

"That's right," said Wellington, "you're a lawyer, aren't you? A former district attorney, if my information is correct."

"It's correct," said Cole. "And if you think we're just going to stand around and let you do this to us, you're crazy."

"You don't seem to have a choice," said Wellington. "Piper was able to prevent us from rendering her powerless. But we'll correct that little oversight soon enough. And once your powers are rendered useless, whatever those powers actually are, there won't be much you can do about it."

"That's not going to happen," said Cole. "You're going to let us go."

"You're very amusing," said Wellington. "I don't see any reason I should do that. And, as I said, you're very useful to us. There's no telling what we'll be able to learn from you. No, Mr. Turner, I'm afraid you aren't going anywhere."

"Bad decision," said Cole. "You see I took out a little insurance policy before I came here."

"Insurance?" questioned Wellington. "What type of insurance?"

"Leo Wyatt, to be specific," said Cole.

"I'm afraid Mr. Wyatt is quite dead," said Wellington. "When he, I believe the term is orbed, the collar he was wearing would have killed him instantly."

"It seems your information about White Lighters' is sorely lacking," said Cole. "White Lighters can't be permanently harmed by something like that. He's immortal. And he has a natural healing ability that helps protect him. He's quite safe, I assure you."

"That's impossible," said Wellington.

"No, he's right," said Paige. "White Lighters' can only be harmed by Dark Lighter poison. Now, unless you included some Dark Lighter poison in your little bomb, it can't kill Leo."

"And unless we leave here right away," said Cole, "Leo and I have arranged a little surprise for you. Something I know you aren't going to like one little bit."

"What kind of surprise?" Wellington asked.

"Well, I know where this place is," said Cole. "And in less than an hour every major news organization in the country is going to be informed of your little outfit here. Not to mention some federal authorities that would be very glad to know exactly what you are doing here. Being a district attorney I have quite a few contacts in any number of federal police organizations."

"They won't find anything here," said Wellington. "Our cover is perfect."

"Except," said Cole, "that some of those federal authorities I mentioned are also witches. Their White Lighters can orb them directly into the complex past any security measures you might have. Along with live video feeds to the outside. There's no way you can stop them all. And I've even arranged for a live broadcast of those feeds on three major television networks. Everyone who has their television set on will see exactly what you're doing here."

"You fool," said Wellington. "Do you have any idea what you've done? If you expose The Initiative you'll render us powerless to fight the evil that assaults innocent people every day. Are you so blind that you can't see the good we do here?"

"The ends justifies the means, is that the idea?" Phoebe asked.

"Exactly," said Wellington. "This is a war we're fighting. And in a war normal rules go out the window. You've jeopardized everything."

"Then I guess you have a decision to make," said Cole. "Let us go and no one needs to learn what you're doing here."

"I have a better idea," said Wellington. He turned to a military man standing next to him. "Shut down the entire complex. Everything goes. Once the news media gets here I don't want them to find so much as a paperclip left."

"Yes, sir," said the man. He looked at Cole and the girls. "What do we do about them?"

"Kill all of them," said Wellington dispassionately.


	10. Chapter 10

TEN

The guards began to raise their weapons. Piper didn't hesitate. Neither Phoebe nor Paige had their powers because of the injections they had received. Piper tapped into her magic and froze the entire room. She wasn't worried about her sisters. They weren't affected by her freezing ability. And it would be a simple matter to break Cole loose from the freeze. But it would give them the time they needed to escape.

Except Piper had overextended herself. She had never tried to freeze so many people at one time. Her power did work but not completely. Her power was the ability to freeze time. But she was pushing her power to the limit. Instead of freezing the room everyone began to move in slow motion.

Piper reached over and grabbed Cole's arm. This broke him free of the freeze. He looked around at the armed guards moving slowly. There were several popping sounds as several of the guards fired their weapons. But the bullets were coming out of the barrels very slowly.

"We need to get out of here," said Piper, turning for Phoebe and Paige. "I don't know how long this is going to last. Considering I couldn't actually freeze everyone I'm betting it won't last long."

"Then let's get going," said Paige. "I don't want to spend one more second here than I have to."

Suddenly a shot rang out. Cole stumbled slightly. Then blood began to run out of a wound in his chest. He stumbled to the floor, trying to rise. They all turned to see who had fired. One of the guards' rifles was still smoking as he turned the weapon on the others.

Piper again tapped into her power. Normally she wouldn't consider harming an innocent. But these were not exactly innocents. They were armed and they were dangerous. And they had all ready proven they were more than willing to kill all of them. In an instant the guard exploded from Piper's power.

"Is he okay?" Phoebe asked, rushing up to Cole.

He was grimacing in pain.

"I'll be fine," he said. "Let's get out of here. Leo can heal me once we're safe. At least my human half. Right now we have to get you to safety."

Suddenly several more shots rang out. Piper stumbled forward and then collapsed on the floor, four bullet holes in her back. Phoebe turned and kicked the nearest guard to her. He went reeling back, his rifle falling to the floor. She reached to pick the weapon up as several more shots rang out. Phoebe fell to the floor covered in blood.

Paige looked up and saw even more of the guards coming out of the freeze. In addition additional guards were starting to rush in through all the doors. Cole screamed as Phoebe fell to the floor. He formed a fireball and cast it, incinerating the nearest guard. Paige turned and grabbed a rifle that had been dropped by one of the guards.

Several shots rang out and Cole collapsed on the floor. One look told Paige he was dead. She glanced around and saw Piper lying on the floor, covered in blood and unmoving. Phoebe was struggling to rise to her feet. One of the guards, an officer according to the rank insignia on his collar, stepped up to Phoebe. He pulled a pistol out of its holster and pointed it at Phoebe.

Paige never saw the shot fired. She glanced down at the rifle to see how to operate it. She wasn't exactly trained with weapons but she figured it couldn't be hard to figure out. It seemed straight forward enough. She turned toward the guards and raised the rifle as she heard a single shot ring out.

She looked and saw Phoebe lying on the floor unmoving. There was a small hole in the middle of her forehead. There wasn't much blood on her face. But the floor beneath her head was covered in blood. She didn't have to check the body to know that Phoebe was dead.

Paige turned the rifle on the guards. Tears were beginning to roll down her cheeks. She knew there was no way for them to escape now. Cole lay dead on the floor. He was the only one who could get them out of this complex. But she wouldn't go easily. And she vowed to take as many of them as she could.

She raised the rifle and pulled the trigger. A guard dropped his rifle and grabbed his chest. He fell to the floor as blood poured out of the wound. Paige fired again and another guard fell. Suddenly two rounds hit Paige in the chest. She dropped the rifle and grabbed her chest as she fell to the floor on her knees.

She looked down and saw her hands and chest covered in blood. There was a searing sensation in her chest. The pain was nearly overwhelming. Her head was beginning to swim. She had been shot. The realization was astounding for her. She had actually been shot.

Try as she might she couldn't keep herself upright. She fell over on her back onto the floor. She lay on the floor looking at the ceiling as her body shuddered. She was dying. She knew that. And even if she weren't she knew the guards would surely finish her in a matter of moments.

_My fault,_ she thought to herself. _This is my fault. If I had only listened to Piper and Phoebe. If I had only taken them more seriously. This is all my fault. They were right. I didn't understand. Now, it's too late._

Paige looked around her. Cole lay dead on the floor. So did Phoebe. Piper wasn't moving and was probably dead, too. The guards were swarming into the room. Several had stopped to check the bodies. Wellington turned back into the room smiling.

Several guards moved over to Paige. They stood looking at her as she gasped for air. Wellington moved across the room and stood looking at her, a smile on is face. He turned to one of the guards.

"They were fools," Wellington said. "Did they actually think they could outsmart us? Finish her. Destroy the bodies. Then clear this place. We can't take the chance that Mr. Wyatt may make good on Mr. Turner's threat."

"Yes sir," the guard.

Paige watched as the guard pulled his pistol from its holster. He chambered a round and stood looking at Paige for a moment. Paige closed her eyes knowing she would never hear the shot that ended her life.

"Paige? Paige? Are you okay?"

Paige opened her eyes. Chandler was standing in front of her. They were holding hands as if they had just shaken hands. Paige looked around her. Piper, Phoebe, Leo, and Cole sat around the around the living room watching her. She was still in the manor.

"What the?" Paige began.

"Just take it easy," said Chandler. "The experience can be a bit overwhelming. Especially if you're not ready for it."

"What happened?" Paige asked. "We were in that God awful secret complex. Wellington was trying to force us to help him. You were all dead. I saw you die."

"Actually," said Chandler, "that all happened in your mind. I'm afraid you've been the victim of a little subterfuge."

"Subterfuge?" Paige questioned. "Just what the hell is going on?"

"Why don't you sit down," said Chandler. "We'll try to explain it to you."


	11. Chapter 11

ELEVEN

"Paige, I asked Chandler to come here," said Leo. "Actually, it was Cole's idea."

"What idea?" Paige demanded.

"To get you to take protecting magic more seriously," said Cole. "We have Chandler's counterparts in the underworld. But I didn't think bringing a demon in the manor was a good idea. So I asked Leo if he could help. He explained that they had Chandler who handled these types of situation."

"Paige," said Piper, "we know you understand intellectually about protecting magic. But you've always said you didn't understand why it was so important. You didn't seem to understand how important it was that we keep mortals from finding out."

"But I said I would keep the secret," Paige protested.

"We know," said Phoebe. "And believe me, we know you would not deliberately break that promise. But you weren't taking our admonishments seriously. Sooner or later you would have made a mistake. And you could have exposed magic without meaning to."

"I would never have done that," said Paige.

"Tell that to Wellington," said Chandler.

"You said that was all in my mind," said Paige.

"Yes," said Chandler. "I am a member of the White Lighter Council as I said. But many White Lighters don't take the admonishments seriously either. It's my job to impress upon them the seriousness of this matter. So I use my power to show them what can happen if they inadvertently expose magic to the mortal world."

"Is that what happened to me?" Paige asked.

"Yes," said Chandler. "Once our hands touched I was able to use my power on you. The actual scenario you witnessed in your minds' eye was not real. But the underlying reasons for it are quite real. You saw just what could happen if you use your magic in front of mortals."

"But I was trying to help," Paige protested. "A man's life was at stake."

"Yes," said Chandler. "And he chose to take that life. You see, in trying to help him you actually violated the two most important rules. You exposed magic to the mortal world. And you interfered with someone's free will."

"He was distraught," said Paige. "He didn't know what he was doing."

"Sometimes," said Chandler, "you just have to stand by while bad things happen. Yes, you tried to save a human life. And in so doing saw what happened. You exposed magic to the mortal world and put yourself and them in danger.

"Paige, this is only one example of what could happen. In this vision you were at the mercy of a secret government organization. Believe me, there are such organizations. Now, just imagine what would happen if the knowledge of magic wasn't restricted to just a covert organization. If the entire mortal world had learned of it."

"I imagine the consequences wouldn't be pretty," said Paige.

"That's putting it mildly," said Chandler. "In your vision Wellington mentioned Senator McCarthy's search for communists in the United States. You're too young to remember that. It happened before you were born."

"I learned about it," said Paige. "In high school and college. It was compared to the witch hunts in Salem in the 1600s."

"Exactly," said Chandler. "And that was just a hunt for people who didn't think the way McCarthy did. Imagine the affect if people became aware of others with your powers and abilities. Able to do the things you can do with really no one to govern what you do."

"There are all those rules we have to obey," said Paige.

"Yes," said Chandler. "And if you don't follow those rules? You know what can happen then. Now, imagine how people would react if they learned about that. And not just a few of you. Hundreds or even thousands of witches all over the United States and the world. Able to control magic and do practically whatever they wanted to. Can you imagine the hysteria, the fear, the madness that would ensue?"

"I guess I never thought of it that way before," said Paige.

"That's why I asked Chandler to come here," said Leo. "Piper and Paige knew you would never understand just by what they said to you. You didn't understand how serious this was."

"Paige, honey," said Phoebe, "we didn't want to fool you like this. Piper and I only learned what was happening a few minutes before Chandler arrived. That's why Leo asked Piper to help him with the ice cream. And why Cole asked me to go upstairs with him. They were explaining to us what they had planned."

"But we agreed with them," said Piper. "I'm sorry we had to do this to you. But we had to show you just how important it is that you not expose magic to the mortal world. Even to save someone. The consequences could be disastrous."

"I understand now," said Paige. "I must admit I didn't really see what the harm was before. But believe me I do now. I guess I can't fault you too much. I suppose I would have done the same thing in your place."

"I'm glad you understand," said Cole. "I know it was my idea. And I know I'm not your favorite person. But even demons know the seriousness of protecting magic. It's even more so for you."

"I know," said Paige. "And I'll be a lot more careful in the future. I guess I still have a lot to learn about magic."

"We all do, sweetie," said Piper. "Phoebe and I have been doing this a lot longer than you have. And there's still a lot we have to learn."

"Well," said Cole, glancing at Chandler, "except for him I'm probably the oldest one here. And believe me when I say you never stop learning. Even after almost a hundred years I still learn things."

"Just like the little incident with the Book of Shadows when you 'borrowed' it and took it to work," said Phoebe.

"Trust me, that is not going to happen again," said Paige. "And I'm going to be a lot more careful when and where I use my magic in the future. I have no desire to end up the pawn of some secret government agency. Speaking of which, I do have a question. You said there were secret organizations like the one I had in my vision. What about this Initiative? Do they really exist?"

"Actually, yes, they do," said Chandler. "But they aren't in San Francisco. There are a couple of cells in California. But they operate in other areas."

"That's good," said Paige. "I didn't like that Wellington one bit."

"Well, Wellington wasn't real," said Chandler. "It's part of the vision. I like to think of them more as docudramas than visions. Fictitious stories based on actual facts. As they say, some of the names have been changed to protect the innocent."

"Or the crazy," said Paige. "He was a piece of work, let me tell you."

"You can tell us all about it," said Piper. "We never did get to our ice cream."

"Isn't it melted by now?" Paige asked.

"Those visions only last a moment," said Chandler. "Even though it might have seemed like hours to you it's only been a couple of minutes in real time."

"Great," said Paige. "I've been looking forward to some Rocky Road ice cream. So, none of them saw my vision?"

"No," said Chandler. "I saw it because I'm the one who created it. And of course you saw it because it was meant for you. But it only happened in your mind. The others aren't privy to the exact specifics of the vision."

"Well then," said Paige. "Let's all go into the kitchen for that ice cream. And I'll tell you exactly what happened. Or what I thought happened. It was pretty frightening."

"It was meant to be," said Chandler. "Sometimes fear is the best motivator."

They all gathered up their bowls and the ice cream and headed for the kitchen.

The End

If you've enjoyed this story, you can find more "Charmed" stories at my website,  You can also post your own "Charmed" stories if you like to write fan fiction.


End file.
